The New Panopticon? Examining the Effect of Home Confinement on Criminal Recidivism

Due to its versatility within the criminal justice system, home confinement has broad appeal as a sentencing option. This meta-analysis examines the effectiveness of house arrest and electronic monitoring on the recidivism of adult offenders. Fourteen effect sizes (from 11 studies) that present recidivistic outcomes were quantitatively pooled, and separate meta-analyses were conducted on varying categories of recidivism severity to assess the differing impact of home confinement. The findings suggest that home confinement helps adult offenders successfully reintegrate into the community upon release from closed custody and deters future offending. Implications for correctional policies and practices toward home confinement as a community-based prevention strategy to supervise offenders are discussed.     

The Lure of New Jobs: How Framing Impacts Perceptions of Local Subsidies for Sports Teams

Municipalities often use public funds to support private projects in pursuit of economic growth or improved quality of life. How does the framing of municipal subsidies impact public support for such funding? We examine the case of government-funded minor league baseball stadiums to address this question. Using nationally representative survey data, we find respondents are much more likely to support funding for stadiums when told that baseball will bring jobs and improve the local economy, compared to other frames. Local governments may therefore rely on positive, economic frames to gain public support, despite a lack of evidence that sports stadiums deliver net economic benefits.     

Learning By Doing: The Long-Term Impact of Experiential Learning Programs on Student Success

Abstract

As the advisers for the Model United Nations and Judicial Internship programs at our university, we have witnessed first-hand the benefits of simulations and experiential learning. Specifically, students are able to apply knowledge from other classes to real-world situations, all while honing their writing skills and communication skills, as well as their ability to analyze and synthesize information—skills that are critical to success in a wide variety of careers. This practical experience also gives students confidence as they prepare for and make decisions about their future career paths. While we have anecdotal evidence suggesting that these programs contribute to student success, we use survey data from former students to assess formally the longer-term impact of participating in these programs. We find that experiential learning programs contribute to student success by improving time to graduation and increasing the likelihood of attending graduate school or law school and/or finding employment after graduation. In addition, the students’ own assessments indicate that these programs instill numerous practical skills and provide insights that help prepare students for success in their future careers.     

From cultural sojourner to guestworker? The historical transformation and contemporary significance of the J-1 visa Summer Work Travel Program

Since the mid-1990s, the J-1 Summer Work Travel (SWT) program has quadrupled in size. While many J-1 visa holders are in the U.S. to study or conduct research, the primary activity of SWT participants is low-wage labor. We analyze the trajectory of the SWT program since its origins in the Fulbright-Hays Act, underscoring both change and continuity in the practical and discursive handling of what are, in effect, guestworkers. Our analysis reveals both longstanding concerns about the SWT program’s risks to foreign and domestic workers, as well as repeated efforts by U.S. government officials and private sector stakeholders to justify its status as cultural exchange rather than temporary work. Yet despite these concerns, over the last two decades, the SWT program has become larger and less regulated. We explore these changes in the context of two contending forces shaping the labor market: on the demand side, a transformation in the organization of work towards ‘fissured’ workplaces and contingent employment, and, on the supply side, limited access to foreign labor due to political gridlock over comprehensive immigration reform. We conclude that the SWT program both reflects broader trends in managed migration and embodies the model of flexible migrant labor many employers now demand.     

The Complexity of Public Attitudes Toward Sex Crimes

Previous research suggests that public opinion about crime is nuanced, as it has been found to vary greatly depending upon the type of questions asked and the amount of information provided. Few have similarly examined the complexity of public attitudes specifically about sex crimes. A survey was administered to a sample of U.S. residents utilizing the factorial survey method. The results suggest that specific details about the offense, offender, and victim had a significant effect on perceptions. The findings point to discrepancies between policy and public opinion, as well as to the importance of educating the public about the realities of sexual offending and victimization.     

‘Wearing the Breeches’? Almack’s,the Female Patroness,and Public Femininity c.1764–1848

Almack’s, a mixed-sex establishment run by a group of female patronesses, was a popular meeting place for the aristocracy in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. Yet, despite its contemporary appeal, the establishment has received little attention from historians. This article addresses this absence, exploring the varying, and often contentious, social, cultural and political functions and meanings the establishment held. Building on recent historiographical developments, this article demonstrates how certain aristocratic women were able to exercise power and influence at the heart of their class. In doing so, it considers the intersections between gender, urban space and political culture. It argues that the activities of the female patronesses were often highly contested, exposing the narrow, and often blurred, line between legitimate and illegitimate action.     

Revisiting the Gender Gap in Political Knowledge

Gender-based differences in political knowledge are pervasive in the United States and abroad. Previous research on the source of these differences has focused on resource differentials or instrumentation, with scholars arguing either that the gender gap is real and intractable, or that it is an artifact of the way the concept is measured. Our study differs from past work by showing that (1) male–female differences in political knowledge persist even when knowledge is measured with recommended practices, but that (2) knowledge gaps can be ameliorated. Across laboratory, survey, and natural experiments, we document how exposure to information diminishes gender-based differences in political knowledge. The provision of facts reduces—and often eliminates—the gender gap in political knowledge on questions covering a range of topics.     

States as Gender Equality Activists: The Evolution of Quota Laws in Latin America

This article examines two decades of strengthening, expansion, and diffusion of gender quota laws in Latin America. The analysis departs from studies of quotas’ adoption, numerical effectiveness, or policy impacts, instead focusing on states’ use of coercive power to integrate women into public and private institutions. Viewing these policies in light of feminist theories of the poststructuralist state reveals how state institutions act to restructure government and promote gender equality. In building this argument, the article presents an up‐to‐date empirical survey and conceptual understanding of quota evolution in Latin America, including recent developments in countries such as Chile, Colombia, Bolivia, Ecuador, Mexico, Nicaragua, and Uruguay.